Robert A. James has been named a Distinguished Eagle Scout upon nomination by the Piedmont Council and Scouting America. The award is granted to Eagle Scouts who, after over 25 years, have distinguished themselves in their life work and have voluntarily shared their talents with their communities.
Rare as Eagle Scouts are, the 2,191 all-time Distinguished Eagles are even rarer still—one in the inaugural class even dating back to 1921. Recipients include President Gerald Ford, Senators Bill Bradley and Sam Nunn, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, CIA Director and Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, admiral Elmo Zumwalt, Astronaut Commanders Neil Armstrong (Apollo 11) and Jim Lovell (Apollo 13), director Steven Spielberg, and Justice Stephen Breyer.
Rob James has distinguished himself through his legal career and through continued service to others by following the principles of the Scout Oath and Scout Law.
Now a partner with the international law firm of Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman, Rob first started there in 1983. There, he advises on energy, construction and infrastructure projects.
He was recognized as one of the Top 100 Lawyers in California (SF and LA Daily Journal, 2006) for his work on the Chevron-Unocal merger, which thanks to a belated unsuccessful competing takeover bid by the Chinese National Offshore Oil Company (CNOOC) was termed by Fortune magazine as the “most politicized takeover battle in American business history.”
Rob was counsel to the largest sponsor on the Caspian Pipeline Consortium, with extensive travel to Russia and Kazakhstan (1993-2000). “Rob was my anchor in this ground breaking project. He was the one who I cornered, always outside the limelight, to explore the possible and chart courses to avoid the catastrophic. This transaction could have run off the rails countless times without Rob’s steady hand at the wheel,” wrote Michael Waller, lead lawyer for the largest Russian company. “Balancing all of the competing concerns in a multinational, multi-faceted transaction such as ours was no easy task. You have precious few opportunities to observe in real time a counterpart walk through such circumstances with such grace and dignity. Working alongside Rob James was one of those precious few opportunities for me.”
Rob’s other projects as counsel have included the design and construction of the San Francisco Giants baseball stadium now named Oracle Park, the first exclusively privately-financed baseball stadium in over three decades (1996-2000); supply of critical United States-origin rare earths for electric vehicles to the American automobile industry (2020-present); $7 billion in Stanford Hospital expansions (2011-present); divestitures of Chevron’s mining operations worldwide (2001-2019); and procurement of the new fleet of Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) railcars (2010-2014).
Along the way, he helped the Getty Museum acquire a Vincent Van Gogh painting that at the time was the most expensive work ever sold at auction (1990); negotiated product placement in a James Bond movie (1989); and wrote the world’s shortest court-cited law review article (one word of text) (1982, republished 1999).
“He was a brilliant legal strategist, able to lead teams in highly complex transactions,” wrote Mary Cranston, Pillsbury firm chair from 1999-2006. “It was always wonderful to work with Rob—he is as kind as he is brilliant…He was an exceptional leader: growing revenue, introducing creative new legal offerings and developing the next generation of leaders in the firm.”
The thought leadership that may be Rob’s most significant contribution is his work on Artificial Intelligence in Renewable Energy, combining two of the most transformative currents of our time. (https://www.pillsburylaw.com/images/content/1/7/178431/AI-in-RE.pdf). He is energy lead for the Artificial Intelligence Trust Foundation.
Not surprisingly, Rob also has a deep history of pro-bono legal work, and other volunteer activities.
In the field of climate change, he is Senior Research Fellow of the Institute for Responsible Carbon Removal, and founding counsel of the California Resilience Challenge.
He was a San Francisco Bar Association Volunteer of the Month for October 1989 for his pro bono legal services after the Loma Prieta earthquake. He contributed to legal planning for relief efforts following hurricane and superstorm damage on the Atlantic Coast and the Gulf of Mexico in the 2010s.
For seven years he served in a variety of roles, including chairman of the board, for the Easter Seal Society of San Francisco Bay Area. During his tenure, Rob served children and adults with disabilities through administering direct service provider programs and led fundraising campaigns for research and development of assistive devices for the disabled.
Rob lives in Piedmont, CA, with his wife Sarah. They have two children, Caroline (Portland, ME) and Stewart (Boston, MA), also an Eagle Scout.
Rob has also served in a remarkable array of positions as a Scouting volunteer. He earned his Eagle Scout rank in 1975 in Salinas, California. Starting in 2008, he returned to Scouting as a parent in Piedmont, serving as den leader, assistant scoutmaster, council president, and more. He continues to serve as the Leadership and Governance lead for the territory serving all of California and Nevada.
National Executive Board members Wes Smith and Anne-Marie Lamarche supported the local council’s nomination of Rob. “We have worked closely with Rob James at the Council, Area and Territory levels and have found him to be an admirable Scouting Leader… Rob elevates every organization he touches. We believe Rob James exemplifies the DESA award through his accomplishments, impact and service to the Scouting community, as well as the high moral standard to which he holds himself and others.”
Bob Coleman, Piedmont’s most recent prior Distinguished Eagle, said, “It is thrilling to add Rob’s name to the list of Piedmont DESA’s. His resume adds great luster to our group.”
“In addition to his skill as a leader, Rob also brings thoughtfulness, humor, and humility,” said Piedmont Council Scout Executive Kate Benson. “His willingness to serve has had a wonderful positive impact on our community.”
The National Eagle Scout Association Committee, as part of Alumni Relations at the Scouting America’s national office, selected the eighteen recipients nationwide this year. Members of the selection committee are all recipients of the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award.
Scouting America, chartered as Boy Scouts of America in 1910, is the nation’s foremost youth program of character development and values-based leadership training.
The Piedmont Council Scouting America runs programs within the footprint of Piedmont. Programs include Cub Scouts (youth k-5th grade), Scouts BSA (youth 11-18 years old), Venturing (youth 14-20 years old), and Exploring (career based, for youth 14-20 years old). About 1 in 4 Piedmont youth are in scouting programs, and girls are a third of the council’s membership. The character, fitness, leadership and adventure of Scouting America here in Piedmont are open to all youth! To learn more, visit www.piedmontbsa.org, or reach out to contact@piedmontbsa.org